


We're About to Find Out

by InsightfulInsomniac



Category: Band of Brothers
Genre: Babe wants to play sardines, Cute, Fluff, George is way too talkative, Joe and George somehow end up in a closet, Lead up to smut, M/M, Roe's birthday
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-23
Updated: 2017-05-23
Packaged: 2018-11-03 22:57:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10977117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InsightfulInsomniac/pseuds/InsightfulInsomniac
Summary: It's Roe's birthday, and Joe, George, and Bill are the stragglers who got roped into Babe's late-night game of sardines. Joe didn't think hiding in the too-small closet was a bad idea until George found him... and maybe it still wasn't such a bad idea.





	We're About to Find Out

**Author's Note:**

> I am in desperate need of some cute Luztoye right now, so here it is. Sardines in the dark is a favorite of my extended family, and we go hard. But it never ends like this, disclaimer.

Joe doesn't really know how he ended up like this, all scrunched up in the back of a closet that reeks of Babe's cologne.

He knows why he's in the Heffron-Roe household, and he knows that it's because it's Doc's birthday. He also knows that Babe is just a little drunk — not enough to be stumbling over his own feet, but enough to come up with stupid ideas.

Like this one.

It had been meant as a joke, with Bill casually mentioning the good ol' childhood hide-and-seek battles he and Babe used to drag on for hours, scaring their respective mothers to death when they'd disappear for way too long, only to be found in the back of the linen closet or curled up in an oversized suitcase in the basement.

Babe had merely laughed at first, then gasped and grabbed Eugene's arm with such sudden abandon that the smaller man nearly spilled his drink all over himself.

"Gene, we should play sardines!"

Roe had just chuckled at that, but raised his eyebrows when he noticed the serious determination in his boyfriend's eyes. "You really want to?"

The redhead nodded eagerly. "Hell yeah! It'll be jus' like when we play wit' your little cousins, Gene! But more fun, 'cause they won't give away your hiding spot by gigglin'."

"Ah, I wouldn't count on that," Joe had remarked, jerking a thumb over at Luz, who had been practically bouncing in excitement in his seat.

"What? C'mon, Joe, I can guarantee that I am a better hider than you," George protested through a mouthful of cake, waving his chocolate-covered fork in his face.

"No way. You're too fuckin' talkative."

Luz grinned. "Maybe, but I'm stubborn as hell."

Joe doesn't know what had overtaken him in that moment, but the challenge in George's eyes had sparked something deep inside him. "Fine. You're on."

"Yes!" Babe pumped his fists in the air, earning a groan from Bill and an amused shake of Roe's head. "Everyone's gonna be so mad they missed this."

"I'm not so sure 'bout that," Bill mutters, silently wishing that he had left with the rest of the partygoers instead of agreeing to polish off the cake and alcohol.

"Aw, don't be so grumpy," Babe teases, already running to the nearby light switch. "And we're doin' this in the dark."

"Joe, you're hiding first, ya big talker," Luz had decided, and that's where Joe blacked out, his overly-competitive nature temporarily blinding him.

Now he's trying very hard not to sneeze or cry out in pain from the hanger that is currently piercing his arm, awaiting the arrival of more people who will inevitably try to squeeze into the closet with him to avoid being the last one standing.

Five minutes pass before he hears the closet door open and the light whisper of an all-too-familiar voice. "Joe? I know you're in here."

Sighing, Joe reaches out and grabs the sleeve of Luz's shirt. "Shut up and get in here."

"There's no room — shit —"

And that's how George landed in his lap, face mere centimeters from his.

"Hello."

Joe snorts. "Hi. Get off of me."

George smirks mischievously, and Joe's already rolling his eyes. "No can do, bucko. It's sardines, so I'm supposed to hide with you when I find you. And now I found you."

"Go to the other end of the closet."

"Ah, but they'd see me! We're hidden behind the jackets over here."

"Besides," George continues dangerously, shifting in Joe's lap so that he's straddling his hips. "I'd make too much noise crawling over there."

"You're making too much noise now," Joe hisses, unable to explain why his hands drift to Luz's waist to steady his wavering balance as he tries to get comfortable.

"You're not that hard to find, ya know. You're a big dude, and you've got a smell about you."

"That's fuckin' weird, Luz," Toye replies, and George shrugs with a smile.

"Eh, well, you do. It's not bad — it's like new leather and cigarettes. And dryer sheets."

"You think about that a lot?" Joe presses jokingly, and George has the nerve to wink.

"Well, when you're this close to a guy, it's not hard to tell. Even though you smell like Babe's cologne right now; Jesus, that stuff is strong. I dunno how Doc has any sense of smell left."

"Shut up, Luz! You're gonna give us away."

George nods, but doesn't shut his mouth, just lowering his volume instead. "We won't get caught, we're both wearing black, like ninjas —"

Joe has absolutely no idea what compelled him to lean forward and kiss George square on the lips, other than the fact that he's extremely competitive and his need to win once again blinded him.

Albeit surprised, Luz doesn't seem to mind at all, and the silence is almost as blissful as the way George sighs happily against Joe's lips. The hands that were resting on Luz's waist now grip it tightly, almost inviting George to roll his body forward to gain more contact with Joe.

Joe can't stifle the low groan that rumbles out of him, and George breaks the kiss with a nip at Joe's bottom lip and a shit-eating grin. "Now, now, you've got to be quiet, Joe, or we're gonna get caught."

"Fuck you," Toye whispers, smothering George's oncoming laugh with another searing kiss that sends hands into hair and areas below the hips.

Luz smirks devilishly as Joe pulls him forward by his ass, grinding cheekily into his lap as Toye works at a spot on his neck. It's a fun game they're playing, tempting fate in a too-cramped closet with three other grown men currently on the hunt to find them. It's ridiculous, almost.

But it's Luz. And somehow, Joe is okay with it all.

"Think Bill would stay over at Babe's tonight?" George purrs into Toye's ear, and Joe chuckles lowly.

"Hell no, birthday sex is a cliché that Babe would be totally into."

"I'm into it too; what do ya know?" Luz jokes, and Joe raises his eyebrows.

"It's not your birthday."

"Mm, but it's someone's. That's good enough for me."

Joe sighs in half-hearted defeat. "But I know that Bill's goin' to back to Fran's place tonight, so it's just me at the place."

"How convenient. Let's make a fuckton of noise and get caught so we can get outta here."

Joe shakes his head. "Uh-uh, we are winning this fucking game."

George smiles slyly. "Oh, so we're a team now? If I remember correctly, I found you first."

"Yeah, but you didn't find me last, so we're both winners. There can only be one loser in sardines."

"Correction, there are three losers," a voice sighs exasperatedly, light seeping into the closet as the door is thrown open. "Get outta there," Bill commands.

With a final cheeky wink at Joe, George climbs off of his lap and crawls out of the closet, stretching his arms above his head.

Joe emerges to three very different expressions — exasperated impatience on Bill's face, suppressed laughter on Babe's, and amused indifference on Roe's. "What?"

"We've been standin' out 'ere for too long waitin' for you to get your shit together," Bill answers. "No one wanted to open the door to closet sex."

"C'mon, we weren't that loud," George protests, and Babe sniggers, flicking the hickey beginning to appear on Luz's neck.

"Ya didn't need to be loud, it's a fuckin' closet."

"Babe?" Roe nods toward his boyfriend, raising his eyebrows with a small curl of his lips. "I think it's time we send our guests on their way."

He grins. "Oh, yeah, right. Don't mean ta be rude, but Bill's got plans... and apparently so do you," Babe waggles his eyebrows at Joe and George, earning a groan of embarrassment and a nod of agreement. "And so do we. So grab some cake for the road, thanks for comin', all the good stuff."

Bill snorts and ruffles Babe's hair, clapping Roe on the back as he passes him on his way out. He throws a wave and an affectionate "Have fun, ya fuckers," Joe and George's way as he exits.

"Sorry if we crashed the party, Doc," George apologizes, pulling his friend in for a quick hug. "Happy birthday."

"Ah, you didn't do nothin' wrong," Eugene smiles softly, patting George's arm. "We've got a date with Webster and Liebgott tomorrow, so this is only the beginnin' of the drama," he winks, shoving some cake in George's hands. "Take it, we won't finish it all."

"You better not 'ave done anythin' freaky in my closet," Babe warns Joe, who rolls his eyes.

"Like there's any room to do anything," he retorts. "'Sides, smells like ya spilled a whole bottle of cologne in there. Was barely able to stand it."

Babe blushes. "I did. Couldn't find socks and knocked it straight over."

Joe chuckles, shaking Babe's hand with a pat on the back. "Well, good luck. Tell Roe I said happy birthday."

"Will do, pal," Babe grins, pushing him out the door. "Now get to it, the night's still young!"

Joe rolls his eyes at that, but meets George's eager gaze and quickens his gait to his truck.

"It's lucky you had to pick me up to come here," George remarks nonchalantly as he slides into the passenger's seat. "Real lucky."

"Yeah, sure is. Wasn't like you planned it."

George grins. "Ah, but I didn't. Fate has a strange way of working in our favor. You kissed me first, anyway."

"I had to. You wouldn't shut up."

"There are other ways to shut me up."

Toye raises his eyebrows as he pulls out of the parking space. "Really? Like what?"

George smirks salaciously. "Oh, I think we're about to find out."

**Author's Note:**

> Convenient, right? (Also, I am living for flirty George)


End file.
